Dolce Kiss
by pseudocitrus
Summary: A fanfic for Akuma to Dolce by Suzuki Julietta. Mayuri comes face-to-face with what normal couples are supposed to do, and tries to see if she can get Beaut to go along. (Mayuri/Beaut)
1. Chapter 1

notes:

+ ahh, i love suzuki julietta's characters so much~

+ & enjoy ^_^

* * *

**Dolce Kiss**

Mayuri raced back to her seat, the news practically bursting out of her. "Mako-chan," Mayuri said excitedly, "Noriko-chan asked me to see a movie with her!"

"That's wonderful, Mayuri-sama," replied "Mako" with a bright smile. Though he regaled her with his usual composed gaiety, she knew that he understood the importance of it: it was the first time she had been invited to see a movie, much less been invited out by any person at all. And the person was a girl! A normal human girl!

Then again, maybe he didn't understand, because his next question was: "What's a movie?"

"A movie is...well, it has moving pictures. And watching it is a very fun thing to do," Mayuri asserted, and Mako smiled.

"In that case, I hope you have a lot of fun."

"Thank you, Mako-chan!" Despite actually being a devil called Mephisto, Mako's tact and sense of how to respond was impeccable and inwardly she wondered again how it was possible that Mako and Beaut, both demons, could be so different from each other — one practically a shining model of good behavior, and the other...well. Beaut still couldn't remember how to say "itadakimasu" before meals.

"It looks like your friend is waiting already," Mako said, pointing at Noriko, who was hanging by the doorway of the classroom.

"Oh, you're right. Thank you, Mako-chan! See you tomorrow!"

She dashed off.

:::

"Mayuri..." Noriko suddenly looked up from her donut, a half-eaten loop that still smiled up brightly with a frosted cat's smile.

"Mayuri," Noriko repeated, "are you okay?"

"Huh? Oh — yeah, yeah!" Mayuri fanned her face. "Oh yes, I'm perfectly fine!"

Mayuri began laughing harshly. Yeah, she wasn't fine at all.

"Did you like the movie?" Noriko asked cautiously. "I noticed you didn't really watch a lot of it..."

"I did watch it!"

"Really? To me it kind of looked like you were turning away and closing your eyes." _And screaming silently_, she thought.

"That's my special way of watching movies," Mayuri explained. She began eating fiercely, stuffing the cat-face donut in her mouth over before any more words could fall out.

Noriko watched, rubbing her brows lightly. "You've never kissed Beaut, have you?"

And, when Mayuri spat crumbs and frosting onto her plate, Noriko sighed. Yup. The first time that the couple on screen had kissed, Mayuri had given a little squeal and Noriko had turned to see her staring at the screen aghast, mouth agape and filled with partly-chewed popcorn.

"Is that stuff — that stuff —" Mayuri gestured as if the movie screen were right next to them. "Is that stuff _normal_? That's what couples do?"

"Well, _human_ couples do those things," Noriko said. She felt exhausted somehow. "Come on, didn't you ever see your parents do those things?"

Mayuri's face squinched as she searched her mind. Noriko had just about given up on hearing anything when Mayuri finally said, "Well, they do dress up together to go out for Halloween..."

"Um…is that so. Well," Noriko said, coughing and using her straw to rattle the ice in her mocha, "human couples kiss and stuff pretty frequently, so maybe your parents just hide it. But, I don't really know if devils do those things at all..."

_Did_ devils do those things? If not, _would_ they? She imagined Beaut, smiling kindly like the love interest of the movie, cautiously taking hand of the protagonist. She imagined Beaut looking at her with eyes filled with longing. He leaned toward her, mouth opening slightly, whispering her name. "_Mayuri_..."

She jumped. "Huh?!"

"Maybe you should go home," Noriko continued. Her donut was finished already; so was her mocha. "You don't look like you're feeling well."

"Yeah," Mayuri agreed, relieved for the excuse. "I'm not feeling well at all."

:::

As she parted ways the movie returned to her, its key scenes replaying in her brain — like that very first accidental kiss — and the very last one, in the rain… Mayuri put her hands to her face and sighed, feeling as if her veins were being filled with warm fluff. As she reminisced, her body carried itself home more or less of its own accord, and when Mayuri returned to consciousness inside her house, she saw that she was in the kitchen, and had a bag of flour in her hands, ready to go into a confection. What would Beaut want today? She hadn't made cupcakes in a while; maybe she could bake some small ones, with lots of frosting. He would really enjoy that…and smile at her…and maybe lean towards her, and…

She felt her cheeks flaring and set the flour straight down. It was pretty late already — maybe it wouldn't be a good idea to see Beaut just this moment — or ever, until the thought of him stopped making her heart feel like it was trying to run marathons. She went to bed, but with the lights off the blanket around her made her feel awfully like she was being embraced, and she stayed up staring at the ceiling for a long time.

Her distraction persisted throughout the next school day, where she alternated between yawning and burying her face in her hands, not out of tiredness but lingering embarrassment. As time went on another feeling started to grow, a niggling sense of unfairness, a thirst for justice. Why hadn't Beaut kissed her yet? Would he ever? Was there something lacking in her? Or maybe…was there something lacking in _him_?

"Are you feeling well, Mayuri-sama?" Mako asked, and he jumped when Mayuri straightened abruptly and fixed him with a fierce stare. "Ma — Mayuri-sama?"

"Mako," he asked, "do devils kiss?"

"Kiss?"

"You know," Mayuri said, "put — put their lips together," and Mako smiled faintly.

"I know what you meant, I was just surprised. Yes, demons kiss...though more selectively than humans."

"Selectively?"

"Well," Mako said, "humans don't often decorate each others horns and wings, do they? Similarly, demons don't often kiss each other."

"I...I see..." She imagined herself pasting paper horns on her head. What would Beaut do then?

Probably just flick them away with his finger. She could almost feel his nail clipping against her forehead. She could almost feel how soft his mouth would feel if he…

"Does that...answer your question? Mayuri-sama?" Mako asked, and Mayuri gasped, "Oh! Oh, yes. Thank you, Mako!"

She slumped down on her desk thoughtfully. So demons didn't kiss often. So how could she get him to…

"_Ah_!" An idea struck her, and she straightened sharply. Her eyes, previously dull with sleep, flared to life. Mako laughed. It looked like Beaut-sama was going to have a very interesting afternoon.

:::

_Finally_.

Lounging on a divan at his demesnes, Beaut felt his magic circle being lit; it felt like something was tugging on one of his ribs, and, perhaps out of habit, his stomach began to rumble. He stood, licked his lips, and answered, crossing the chasm between them in a flicker of glittering light.

The instant he materialized in the human world his nose was filled with a lovely smell, and he searched for its source as soon as the glittering debris of his teleporting magic faded away. He didn't have to look too hard: Mayuri was there in front of him, holding out a plate.

"It took you long enough," Beaut told her with irritation. "You didn't call me yesterday."

"Sorry, Beaut, I was busy. I went out to see a movie with Noriko-chan! Isn't that great?"

"Sure…" He looked down at the plate she was holding. On it were two cupcakes. Beaut frowned.

"That's it?"

"Each cupcake stands for a request," Mayuri declared brightly.

"Two today, huh?" Beaut's tail curled around and he reclined in midair. "They better be serious ones this time."

"They are! First — do you think you can get me another plant? I think this one is getting pretty lonely."

She gestured at the windowsill, where the little saw-mouthed plant that he had given her some time ago did somehow look to be a little bored and isolated-looking.

"Alright," Beaut said, waving his hand impatiently. "What's the other thing?"

"I have somewhere I want to go with you today!" Mayuri exclaimed, and reached for his elbow. She tugged him, still floating, to a table, and then pushed him into a chair. The cupcake plate rattled as she dropped it in front of him. "Come on, eat, eat!"

"You're certainly in a rush," Beaut muttered, securing a napkin to his collar. He didn't like it; after not seeing her for a while he had thought that they would enjoy some relaxing time together, but now he found himself trying to stifle his anxiety. Well, at least there was food. He took a deep breath to let the fragrance settle into his lungs. He picked up a cupcake, opening his mouth. And —

"Wait — Beaut, wait! What do you say before eating?"

Beaut sighed and thought. "I..ita-something...?" And when she just waited expectedly for him, he sighed. "Ita…I don't remember."

"Come on, do your best!"

"Ita…" He waited a little longer and then shook his head. "I don't remember." Stupid human words. Mayuri sighed as he started eating.

"So where is it that you want to go?" he said, dabbing his mouth with the napkin.

"I'll tell you when you're done!"

The tip of his tail twitched back and forth with irritation as Mayuri stared at him intently, but his annoyance at her ambiguity and the small amount of food she had for him vanished as soon as he ate the cupcake — peach-flavored, with chunks of candied fruit, and the entire thing topped with a swirl of buttercream frosting. He closed his eyes to savor it. He felt the sweetness fill his entire being. It was so —

"Hurry, hurry!" Mayuri cried, and Beaut frowned.

"There's only a couple, I want to savor them!"

"I'll give you the rest afterward! Come on, Beaut, we need to hurry to catch the next show!"

"Show?"

"Just come on!"

At her insistence Beaut rushed on, shoveling the cupcakes past his grimace. Such a waste. As soon as the last crumb was swept into his mouth, Mayuri grabbed his arm and tugged him upright, still chewing, to her front door.

"Get your human disguise on, we're going!"

:::

It turned out that she wanted to take him to something called a movie. It was housed in a large building that smelled foul.

"Mmm, popcorn," said Mayuri. "I can't help getting some when I smell it. How about you, Beaut?"

"The only human world food I'm interested in is your baking," Beaut muttered, noise wrinkling at the white puffs behind the glass. Mayuri beamed until he continued: "How long is this going to take? I want those other cupcakes."

"Just an hour or two," Mayuri answered. "Don't worry, just enjoy it."

She retrieved food and they walked together into a large chamber lined with velvet. Soon it became clear that a movie was a sort of two-dimensional illusion that depicted a series of events. History? Beaut watched, skeptical, as a human girl stumbled upon a shrine inhabited by a devil fox, and brought him into servitude by kissing him.

Suddenly he felt a chill. He glanced over and jumped when he saw Mayuri's eyes boring into him.

"W-what?" he asked, and was immediately hushed by the other humans around him.

"Nothing," Mayuri whispered back, but her lips were pursed, and some time later, when the devil fox abruptly kissed the human girl to bond himself to her once more, he noticed Mayuri staring at him again.

"_What_?" he asked, this time in a quiet voice, and again she said, "Nothing," and looked back at the screen.

The movie was long, but reasonably interesting. The devil was implausible but someone that Beaut thought he might ally with, or at least try the cooking of. The illusions were sometimes confusing in how they switched back and forth and he was just getting the hang of it when the screen faded to black.

"What? What happened?" Beaut asked. Human words began to scroll down the screen. The lights turned on and people were standing and talking. "Did it end?"

"It's a multiple-part series," Mayuri said, smiling brightly. "It ends on a cliffhanger so you'll want to see the next one."

"Well, what happens?" Humans were glancing at him curiously but he ignored them.

"Um…I don't know what happens. But we can come back when the next movie comes out and watch it together."

Beaut fumed as they exited the theater. "How can you just end like that?"

"It's what movies do, Beaut. But I'm glad that you enjoyed it enough to see what happens next! I chose that one because I thought you might be interested…you know, it has a demon and a human girl...and I thought maybe...it would give you some ideas..."

Beaut wasn't listening. "How annoying," he was muttering. "Humans make things that intend to frustrate you. I'll never understand it."

He rubbed his forehead; then brightened at another thought. "So is this the thing that you wanted me to do with you? And now we can go back and I can have the cupcakes?"

"Not quite yet," Mayuri said, troubled. This was not going right at all. Beaut seemed to have come away with the wrong ideas. Hadn't he noticed the kissing at all? Hadn't the movie been painfully obvious to him? The whole time she watched she had been squirming around in her stomach, touched by the love between the demon and the girl on screen, and thinking, _A demon and a human girl — that us! US!_ As the movie went on she felt like she could imagine Beaut's lips on hers, gently — his hand curling perfectly around her waist —

"Mayuri? Are you alright?" Mayuri opened her eyes and jumped when she saw Beaut right in front of her, examining her closely. She stared at his pursed lips. "You look a little red."

He perked. "Maybe we should hurry home. So that we can relax and have the cupcakes."

"I — I want to get some noodles first!"

"Noodles?"

"You know — the long things, in broth."

"Oh, that. I'm not interested in that."

"Please? Won't you come with me?" Mayuri pleaded. "Just this last thing," and Beaut sighed.

"Alright."

But on the way to the noodle shop, Mayuri tripped. When Beaut bent down to help her up she suddenly straightened and brought her face close to his.

"...huh?"

"Nothing," she muttered, standing and brushing herself off. They continued on to the noodle shop, Beaut absently rubbing his grumbling stomach and thinking of the cupcakes. He could practically taste the buttercream on his tongue. He sighed with delight and closed his eyes, trying to ignore the strong salty smell steaming from Mayuri's noodles.

"Oh, Beaut!"

He cracked open an eye. "What is it?"

"My cheek." She pointed. There was a bit of noodle on it. Beaut raised an eyebrow at her and pointed at her napkin. She finished the rest of her noodles without event, but then wanted to stop by a shaved ice stand. Beaut snorted but followed her. What was with her today? She just kept dragging him left and right.

"Beaut!" This time a bit of shaved ice that had gotten stuck in the corner of her lip. He grabbed a packet of tissues a human was passing out and handed it to her.

"_Beaut_!" Now the icing from a cheap frozen cream puff smeared on the other corner of her mouth. Impatient, Beaut grabbed her sleeve and swiped it across her face.

"You are awfully incompetent today," he remarked. "Maybe you should rest. Rest at home," he clarified, in case it wasn't obvious, and Mayuri sniffed. He looked at her.

"Stupid Beaut," Mayuri murmured, and suddenly she was crying.

"Wh-what? What did _I_ do?" he demanded, and Mayuri snapped, "_Nothing_!"

Nothing. She swiped her hand across her face angrily. Maybe Beaut didn't like her after all. It was so painful, to be the only one feeling the things that she did — wanting to be close, wanting to feel his warmth, wanting to kiss him and feel him. But maybe it was hopeless. He was a devil — and the only thing that he wanted from her was her baking.

"Stop lying," Beaut said angrily. "What did I do?"

"Nothing." She turned away and squeezed back the rest of her tears. She felt loneliness grip her — she realized suddenly how alone she was — that, even though Beaut was beside her, he was in a completely different world. Well, that had always been true — but now she could see it, the chasm between them, much like the gap between her and the students at her school that shunned her as a witch. They were too different. They thought too differently.

"Come on, let's go home," she said quietly, and her words were strangely flat and detached. Beaut followed, disturbed, trying to make sense of what had happened. Wasn't she enjoying herself? Hadn't he done all the things she wanted him to do, tagged along with all her requests?

He waited for her to perk up once they reached her house, but she only retrieved the cupcakes, which she had set aside under foil. "Here you go," she muttered. "You should just take them back to the other world and eat them there."

"Why not here? What's the matter?" he tried again, reddening with frustration, but she ignored him and jabbed the tray at him, so fiercely that he was afraid she would let go and let it fall. He took it and she turned around, putting her back to him.

"Bye, Beaut," she said, and added firmly, "see you later."

"Mayuri," he called after her, but she was already headed up the stairs. Angrily, he stormed off through the circle. Mayuri made it to her room and, once the crackle of magic dissipated completely, curled up and stared at the wall.


	2. Chapter 2

**Dolce Kiss**

Beaut returned in a huff. The instant he landed at his demesnes the sweet smell of the cupcakes began to dissipate throughout the manor, and in a moment his servants were peering around the doorframe, their huge noses twitching. Even Mephisto arrived, nostrils flared.

"Is that Mayuri-sama's baking?" he asked. Beaut peeled back the foil and tasted the frosting, but it somehow wasn't as sweet as it had been earlier. He retreated to the divan and lied down, answering morosely.

"Yeah. Help yourself."

"Are you sure, Beaut-sama? Mayuri-sama's precious cooking.."

"Go ahead. Whatever."

Mephisto's approaching footsteps were accompanied by the shuffling of the servants, clearly also hoping for a bite. Beaut stared at the ceiling as Mephisto distributed cupcakes to their fins, which were trembling with excitement.

"I take it," Mephisto said, licking his lips after a first bite, "that the kiss didn't go so well," and Beaut glanced at him with furrowed brows.

"What? Kiss?" And when Mephisto didn't respond as fast as he'd like — "What do you mean, kiss?"

"Mayuri-sama was asking me today about whether devils kiss," Mephisto explained, licking one finger and shuddering with delight. "This is _delicious_. As to be expected of Mayuri-sama."

"Don't take another bite until you explain what you mean!"

"I've explained everything already, Beaut-sama. Mayuri-sama was very interested in kissing you."

"How do you know that? How was _I_ supposed to know that?"

"I believe she got the idea from entertainment that she consumed with Noriko-chan. Humans call this entertainment a movie."

A...movie?

"Ah…AAAAHHHH!"

Beaut paled. The movie Mayuri had wanted him to watch — the way she glanced at him every time the main characters kissed — her being clumsy, putting her face close to his, putting food enticingly close to her mouth — Beaut straightened, hands gripping his face in revelation and horror. So that whole time — she had wanted to _kiss him_? Or, she had wanted him to _kiss her_?

"But — but I don't know how to do something like that!" Beaut protested, standing on the divan. "Demons don't just — naturally do those things!"

Mephisto's mouth thinned. He resisted the urge to rub his brow. "Kissing isn't an unnatural thing for demons to do, Beaut-sama, though I will admit it doesn't happen willy-nilly like it might with humans. I think if you were to try it you might even find it enjoyable."

"Enjoyable...!" Beaut spat.

"Yes, enjoyable. Don't tell me you've never wondered about it, Beaut-sama? The way that someone's mouth feels on yours…how warm another body feels, when close to yours…" Mephisto's voice was low and abruptly Mayuri rose up in Beaut's mind, smiling and pressing her body to his, smelling sweet.

"Stop," Beaut said with a shudder, feeling his heart race, probably out of panic. His eyes fell on the servants, most of which were licking their fins delightedly to get the last of the cupcake crumbs. "You! And you!"

As he pointed two of the servants jumped and paled.

"Y-yes, Beaut-sama?"

"Kiss." And when the servants turned their heads toward each other in hesitation, Beaut scowled. "Kiss! Do it!"

The servants looked at him helplessly and then at each other. The one on the left flushed. They took each other's fins and leaned forward, trembling.

"Stop teasing them, Beaut-sama," Mephisto interrupted, and the servants pulled away from each other. The one on the right sighed with relief; the one on the left was blushing and looked a little disappointed.

"I want to see how they do it," Beaut argued, staring at them intently. "Come on, start again."

"Beaut-sama," Mephisto said tiredly, "are you nervous about not being good at it?"

"No! Definitely not!"

"Because if that's the case, I doubt that watching your servants would help. I could help you if you would like. Or I'm sure that you would find good volunteers, such as Uphir —"

"NO." Beaut felt faint at the mere thought of it. He put a hand on his forehead.

"In that case," Mephisto said, procuring a handkerchief and using it to wipe his fingers, "just do your best the next time you see Mayuri. Let me know if you need anything," he concluded, turning and leaving. The servants shuffled out behind him as he threw out his last advice:

"I would advise that you not stress out about it until then."

:::

But two human days passed without word from Mayuri and all Beaut could do was stress out. Why wasn't she calling him? When he closed his eyes all he could hear was the strange, gentle Mayuri that Mephisto had summoned into his brain (her voice abnormally low as she whispered, "_Kiss me, Beaut_")…and the Mayuri that he had seen last, with a flat voice and hard eyes that made his stomach squirm. By the third day his skin was crawling with impatience and frustration and he stood, grabbed a plump satchel bag hanging nearby, and, with a snap of his wings, was off.

He examined the windows of her house when he arrived, and found them dark and empty. She must have gone out somewhere. Somehow that fact filled him with muddy relief. What would he do when he saw Mayuri, anyway? What _could_ he do? Now that he knew what she really wanted… now that he knew that she had been thinking about kissing the whole time that day, without him knowing…his heart was racing just thinking about it. Out of stress, probably.

How dare she stay away from so long anyway! What was she doing? The satchel shook and he winced, his mood getting fouler as something sharp from it prodded into his clothing. He might as well find Mayuri as soon as possible. He tied thoughts of her into a net of magic and cast it over the town, and its pulse eventually led him...

...to the movie theater.

What? Beaut landed and started to enter the theater in his human disguise, but was promptly restrained and asked to purchase a ticket. He glared, flustered, but before he could magic his way out of the situation the doors began to open. He darted out of the way and hid around the building. He could sense that she was coming out, and waited. There she was — for some reason Beaut ducked behind the wall a little further. And there with her..._was Mephisto_.

"How did you enjoy it, Mako-chan?" Mayuri asked, and her voice was cheerful — much different than the cold one that she had used to drive him away days ago. She smiled at Mephisto and Beaut ground his teeth together.

"It was very intriguing," Mephisto said, prim and proper as usual. "Thank you very much for inviting me."

Inviting? Mayuri had _invited_ him? Beaut frowned. Why hadn't Mayuri contacted _him_?

"No problem! Did it meet your expectations? I'm sure devils have their own entertainment..."

"It's not the same at all, Mayuri-chan. And this chocolate is delicious." Mephisto had a partially eaten bar which he place in his jacket pocket. "I'll save some for when I return."

What movie did they watch? Was it the same one? Beaut bit his lip. Was Mayuri now — trying to get _Mephisto_ to —?

No no no. Definitely not. Definitely.

"Mayuri-chan," Mephisto said, "would you maybe like to eat some noodles with me?"

"Ah..." She hesitated, just for an instant. "Sure! I'd love to!"

She looked so happy. Beaut wrapped his magic around himself to deflect the attentions of humans and especially of his servant, and observed them from a safe distance. They walked side-by-side, perfectly; Mephisto remarked on the things they saw, and Mayuri responded, often with laughter, which Beaut could feel piercing his ears. They entered a noodle restaurant, the same that Mayuri had taken Beaut to after they had watched the movie together, the very same type of store that the movie's devil fox and human girl went to together. Beaut nibbled his lip and clenched his fist. What was happening here?

He wove his magic tighter around himself, and entered the restaurant as well. The server glanced toward him and then away, attention deflected. Beaut took a seat at a full table and watched as Mayuri and Mephisto ordered food. Since when did Mephisto like human food so much anyway?

As he watched he felt his ire rising. How dare they? Just look at them, eating together like proper humans — saying that "itadakimasu"word he could never remember, splitting a particularly large fried shrimp animal between them. As he continued watching his bubbling frustration began to calm, and grow heavy. Mayuri looked...really happy. And with her Mephisto looked almost human — or, at least, very comfortable in the role of the human, and more especially, comfortable with Mayuri, whose loud laughs seemed to echo through the restaurant. Had she laughed even once when they had been together that day?

He couldn't remember.

At the end of the meal, Mayuri pulled a plastic bag from her purse and handed it to Mephisto. Even from his distance Beaut could smell that it contained cookies, and his mood darkened. Mayuri paid for the meal and Mephisto said, "Gochisou-sama!" Perfect human gratitude. Beaut couldn't remember if he had said that word himself, though he realized now that Mayuri had used her human money on him then too, and also at the movies.

Well, but _she_ was the one who had wanted to go to the movies herself! And yet...and yet...

"How about ice cream next, Mako-chan?" Mayuri offered, and Mako said, "I would love to, Mayuri-chan," and they stood and left, Beaut following them in one of the sparse summer shadows. Along the way they walked through a park together, walking easily while Beaut followed, wrapped in magic and floating not far behind. Eventually they made it to the very same place where Mayuri had smeared shaved ice on her cheek. Mayuri ordered for both of them and Mephisto said it again: "Itadakimasu!"

"Itadakimasu," Beaut echoed in a mutter.

Mephisto ate too quickly and Mayuri laughed as he clutched his brow in pain. They started making their way toward Mayuri's house, and Beaut followed, flying not far behind. He ignored the restless shaking of his satchel and rested his chin on tented fingers, eyes hooded, bemused. Is this what Mayuri would look like — how she would laugh, and smile, if she were dating a human? Or would she just be this way in general, if she were not daring Beaut? He couldn't even remember the last time that she had been that way with him.

The pair paused at the front gate of her house.

"Mayuri," Mephisto said, and as Mayuri looked up, Beaut did as well. To his horror he saw that she had a little bead of melon syrup in the corner of her lip.

"You have something here," Mephisto said, and Mayuri's eyes widened as he put his hand on her chin. He leaned in — Beaut's heart jumped —

"_Stop_!" he shouted, and he lunged, the magic shedding from him at the sound of his voice.

"Stop," Mayuri said, simultaneously. Mephisto put his hand down quickly, but too late — Beaut had overreacted and was now completely visible on the path in front of them — flushed and flustered, the human disguise askew. One horn was clearly poking through his dark hair, a sort of ahoge. Mayuri stared.

"Beaut," she said in surprise, and then laughed. "It took you long enough!"

"I told you he was following us this whole time, Mayuri-chan," Mephisto said calmly, finishing dabbing the smear from her mouth with a napkin. Mayuri looked surprised, then took the napkin from him and then began dabbing at her face herself.

"So you knew," Beaut said, and though his voice was shaking with anger, it wasn't a kind that Mayuri recognized; his normal outbursts were usually full of fiery rage, and this one sounded...she considered. It seemed upset — hurt. His face was red. Mephisto cleared his throat.

"Perhaps I should be heading home first," he said, and Beaut glared at him.

"Go if you want!"

"I'll see you later, Mayuri-chan," Mephisto said, giving a little bow, and before Mayuri could protest he vanished, leaving her alone with Beaut, who was clenching and unclenching his fists, and still quite red. Sensing that he was unexpectedly very hurt, Mayuri started first.

"Beaut — let me explain —"

"There's no need to explain, I get it!" Beaut burst out. "I'm not fit to be a boyfriend for you. I don't know all these human words you have or when to say them —"

"Beaut —"

"And I don't like normal human food —"

"Beaut, will you just —"

"And I don't know how to kiss the way you humans do either —"

"_Beaut_ —"

"So yes, I get it! Fine! You don't need to do all this — pretending and — and giving him cookies —"

"_Beaut_," Mayuri screamed, "_shut up_!" And Beaut quieted, finally. Both of them were huffing and glaring.

"That's your problem, Beaut!" Mayuri yelled at them. "You never listen! I didn't call Mako-chan here, he came himself — to see how I was, since he knew I hadn't called you in a while — he was checking up on me, like a good friend!"

"Oh, I see, I understand now. _Mako-chan_ is such a better devil for you to hang out with," Beaut growled, "since he can remember all those words you like, and even eat that hideous salty food," and Mayuri grew even redder.

"Beaut, you jerk — I don't care that you have a problem remembering basic language — or that you don't like human food —"

"You don't?" Beaut said, and Mayuri shook her head angrily.

"No! But I _do _care that you're selfish, and all you think about is yourself!" Mayuri's eyes were filling with tears. "Like — you didn't ask me what I thought after the movie — and you didn't want to hang out afterward — and you didn't even think about — wanting to be close to me — because when we're together all you want from me is sweets. You don't care at all how I feel!"

"I _do_ care! Obviously!"

"It's _not_ obvious!" Mayuri shouted. "You never do anything for me!"

"Well," he shouted back, "I could say the same for you! You only ever make me food whenever you want me to do something for you." His voice lowered with exhaustion and sadness. He realized that what he was saying was the truth. "You drag me left and right doing all these human things and then as soon as I finish you just send me away again, like you did last time."

He said the words with the last bit of breath that he had left, and didn't have any more air or will in him to say anything. He looked down at the ground, unwilling to look at Mayuri's face, though if he had dared he would have seen that what was in her eyes was not irritation or even disgust at his weakness, but a sympathy that smoothed out the jagged edges in the shouts that she had remaining in her throat.

They were silent for a while, though not really: they huffed to catch their breath again. Their fury drained and left them shuffling in the dirt, voices spent, filled more with tiredness than anger. They had fought down a slope and now were a mess at a bottom, no longer sure how to stand again.

Beaut winced suddenly, then sighed and reached into the satchel looped over his shoulder.

"Here," he said, taking it off and holding it out without looking at her. Bewildered, Mayuri reached and took the bag. She didn't need to peer in to see what it was; the plants had chewed a hole through the fabric and one purple, needle-mouthed bud was searching for its next prey with snapping jaws. But when she took the satchel another blossom came nosing out of its top, sniffing cautiously.

"I figured just one would get lonely in the bag," Beaut explained quietly. "And three plants together will probably be less lonely than two. So if that's all that you want from me for now, I'll see you later."

"Wait, Beaut," Mayuri called, and she grabbed his arm as he turned away. When he looked back at her he saw that she was smiling, and his heart fluttered slightly.

"Thank you, Beaut," she said. "And...I'm sorry. For not understanding how you felt."

"It's alright," Beaut said softly, feeling his face warm. He glanced down at her free grin and when she hugged him suddenly he thought that maybe everything was alright, even if the little purple plant was taking the opportunity to nibble at his clothing again. Her face fit against perfectly against his neck and he put his arms around her as she did, feeling the anger-emptied hollow of him filling with warmth. Mayuri tilted her head up.

"This is when you say sorry too," Mayuri whispered, "if you mean it," and Beaut considered.

"I'm sorry," he decided, and Mayuri laughed. The sound was clear in his ear and shook him. He leaned his head against her and closed his eyes. Very quietly he said, "I'll try harder to learn more about those stupid human things if that will make you happy."

Mayuri pressed her face into his chest. Beaut was so warm. She had thought this whole time that she had wanted him to make a move on his own — to hug her like this, kiss her — but maybe that had been too much to ask of someone who she knew could be a pastry-headed devil. She knew what she wanted. Why should she have to wait?

"It's okay. I won't force you to learn that stuff if you don't want to," Mayuri told him. "And I'll do better to give you sweets even without a request. After," she said, "this one," and she stepped back from him and pulled out from her purse a little plastic bag with a gold bow. Through the plastic Beaut could see a stack of cookies, larger than the ones he had seen her give Mephisto, lengths of gingerbread with their ends dipped in chocolate.

Beaut's smile was broad and sudden and bright. He took the bag, already feeling his mouth water. "Alright. What is it you want for this?"

"A kiss."

The smile fell and he scratched behind his horn. "I don't know how to do that," he said quietly. "Choose something else."

"Give me these back then," Mayuri said, and she laughed when Beaut impulsively pulled the cookies closer to his chest. "We'll, alright then! If you want to keep them, kiss me."

"Okay," Beaut decided, "come here." His mind raced as Mayuri came closer and stood straight expectantly, his lips pursed not with preparation but with embarrassment. How was he supposed to do this? How had the devil done it in the movie? Suddenly he was aware of the wetness of his mouth, the weirdness of it. He swallowed and saw that Mayuri was licking her lips and wringing her hands.

"Relax," he snapped, hoping that he would relax too, and Mayuri swallowed visibly, and nodded, and took a deep breath.

"Close your eyes," he instructed next, realizing it would be easier if she wasn't staring him down like a hawk. She did. Safe from scrutiny, Beaut eyed her. He realized for the first time that she was wearing something different today, a pink dress that he'd never seen before, which fit her quite well. When he leaned toward her he noticed too that her lips, normally plain, were different: they glistened and smelled very faintly of vanilla.

His horns, even in his disguise, had mass, and were in the way. He took her chin between his thumb and forefinger and guided her carefully between them, towards him, and then — before he could hesitate further — pressed her mouth against his. It was surprisingly soft, and warm, and wet. Their noses brushed. A strange hot chill ran through him. Mayuri's mouth dropped open slightly and he licked her lips, which (despite their alluring vanilla smell) didn't taste like anything.

No, that wasn't quite true. He sucked on her upper lip and she shook slightly and he held her still to keep her from moving into his horns, and also to keep her against him. He closed his eyes and covered his mouth with hers, feeling his face warm. There was a taste there, something that filled him up as easily as if he was eating desserts. Something... He leaned forward to reach it. Who knew that, more than the things she baked, Mayuri herself was so sweet? She sighed into his mouth, a soft and low sound that made him lean in closer, tilt his head —

She yelled and jerked back, holding her right brow. Beaut stared, hazy, not quite able to comprehend as Mayuri looked at her palm and yelled, "I'm bleeding!"

His horn had grazed her. Beaut blinked slowly.

"I need to get a bandage," she announced, pressing her hand against her head and turning towards her house, and Beaut grabbed her arm.

"Wait. Here." He stood and carefully dropped another kiss on her brow. Magic followed and sealed the scratch with a raven-colored glimmer. He discovered that her skin there had that same subtle sweetness as her mouth and he struggled to pull himself away. Her face was flushed as a strawberry.

"Is that enough?" he asked.

She patted her brow with a shaking hand. "Um, it doesn't seem to be bleeding anymore, so, probably."

"I meant, is that enough kissing," Beaut rephrased with irritation, hoping it wasn't, and Mayuri grew even redder.

"Ah…um…" She touched her lips with one finger. Most of the lip gloss she'd put on was gone now, and she put her hands on her warming cheeks. Beaut was staring at her. "Yes," she decided, "that's enough." Any more and her racing heart would probably flee her chest entirely.

Beaut leaned back, reclining in the air, looking thoughtful. "That _was_ pretty enjoyable," he realized. "You taste really good, Mayuri."

"I — I _taste_ —?!"

"Maybe," Beaut said, eyes gleaming, "next time you have a request, you can pay me in kisses instead."

"It would save me a lot of trouble!" Mayuri said, half-laughing in delight and embarrassment.

"You wouldn't like it?"

"Ah, no…I probably would." She grinned up at him, scratching her head, adorable. Beaut glanced down at her and then floated down, pressing his forehead to hers, taking her hands in his. He leaned toward her mouth again, whispering.

_"Itadakimasu."_


End file.
